This invention relates to an attraction method for lean air-fuel mixture to be supplied to the combustion chamber in a cylinder and an attraction electrode plug for use in the attraction method.
One prior art method for collecting fuel particles in a lean air-fuel mixture to be supplied to the combustion chamber in a cylinder and igniting the lean air-fuel mixture is designed to cause corona discharge by means of a corona discharge electrode 90 to collect the fuel particles and ignites the lean air-fuel mixture as shown in FIG. 1.
However, in the prior art method, since a negative pressure generates in the cylinder on the suction stroke of the engine, the corona discharge electrode 90 tends to cause glow discharge and the high voltage applied to the corona discharge electrode 90 drops suddenly as shown in FIG. 2 and is not capable of maintaining the fuel particles at and about the spark gap 22 of the ignition plug 20 resulting sometimes in failure of ignition.
The present invention is designed to eliminate the disadvantages inherent in the prior art method as mentioned hereinabove and provide an attraction method for lean air-fuel mixture in which the fuel particles in the lean air-fuel mixture are always attracted to and about the spark gap of the ignition plug and maintained there until the time of ignition to the degree that the combustion of the fuel can be positively effected, an attraction electrode capable of attracting the fuel particles in the lean air-fuel mixture by electrostatic induction and an attraction method for lean air-fuel mixture disposed in such a manner that the distribution of the fuel particles which flow into manifolds in communication with cylinders can be made evenly to the respective cylinders.
The construction and operation of the present invention will now be described referring to the accompanying drawings.